1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved lighting apparatus, and in particular, to an apparatus and method for retrofitting a snowplow with lighting to warn other motorists of the presence and location of the snowplow.
2. Description of the Background
For snow removal from public roads, public and municipal agencies typically fit a snowplow on road repair, sanitation, and other public works vehicles, which are large diesel vehicles with wide plows and tall lights. They are heavy and have long stopping distances, especially in poor driving conditions. When they are plowing, it is highly undesirable to stop or swerve to avoid a road hazard, because plowing requires steady and straight progress to effectively move snow off of the road surface.
Motorists are using the roads during snowfall conditions with increasing frequency. Motorists are also increasingly using vehicles that lend a largely false sense of safety and invulnerability in poor driving conditions, such as four-wheel drive and all-wheel drive vehicles. Snow plow operators must increasingly contend with drivers that move past too closely and too quickly for safety. It is therefore highly desirable to make motorists aware of the presence and position of a snowplow mounted on the front of a public works vehicle.
In contrast, the vast majority of vehicles used to plow snow for profit are pickup trucks and utility vehicles. They are often vehicles engaged in the landscaping business in the warmer months. These vehicles are not as tall as public works vehicles and warning illumination, if present, is often blocked or partially blocked by the snowplow. This snowplow user must be able to move from job to job on the roads, typically at nighttime or other poor visibility conditions. Warning illumination would therefore also be of great advantage to the person plowing driveways and lots for profit, especially in climates where the winter night is very long.
A key benefit of a retrofit kit for snowplow lighting is that the snowplow user may acquire the lighting kits after they have evaluated the need for lighting, or after they have established business to pay for the lighting kit. A retrofitted light kit of the proper design would be simple to remove to repair and replace components, and would serve the market for existing snowplow owners. Snow throwers for residential use, which are gasoline powered and use an impeller or pair of impellers to remove snow hydraulically instead of by way of a plow, are well known in the prior art, and sometimes employ lighting apparatus to facilitate plowing at night. Such retrofitted light kits are for the purpose of allowing the user to see in night operation, and for the purpose of warning others.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a retrofit snowplow lighting system for incorporation onto a new or existing snowplow, which warns others of the presence and location of the snowplow apparatus.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method for conveniently applying a lighting apparatus to an existing snowplow that is versatile so as to permit installation on a wide variety of commercially available snowplow units, and is economical and facile in manufacture.
These and other related objects are accomplished by providing a plurality of lamps fixed to the side portion of a snowplow, near the top of the moldboard or near the top of the frame. Holes are applied to structural members of the moldboard, and fasteners and protectors are employed to fixedly attach electrical connections through the holes. Fasteners such as eye bolts are used to fixedly attach the electrical connections that run from the moldboard, through the snowplow frame, and into the engine compartment. A detachable electrical connection allows the lighting apparatus to be connected to the vehicle electrical system when in use, and detached when the snowplow attachment is removed. Further connections allow the moldboard to be disconnected from the snowplow frame without disrupting the illumination kit.